Einziger Schweizer unter den 100 Global Thinkers 2009: Tariq Ramadan

Schon frappierend: Am (erschütternden) Tag, an dem die Schweiz den Bau von Minarette an Moscheen verbietet, ist der einzige Schweizer, der es auf die Liste der 10 wichtigsten Denker des Jahres 2009 des renommierten US-Magazins "Foreign Policy" schafft, ein MUSLIM: Tariq Ramadan.

Begründung: "Weil er sein Leben der Aufgabe widmet zu beweisen, dass Europa und der Islam nicht unvereinbar sind."

Das ist der (englisch Text) im neusten FP-Magazin:

49. Tariq Ramadan

for dedicating his life to proving that Europe and Islam are not incompatible.

Religious scholar | Switzerland

For his entire life, this grandson of Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna has been called a walking contradiction: an Islamic intellectual who espouses democracy but believes religious law is universal, who detests Zionism but also denounces anti-Semitism, and who supports Palestinian resistance but criticizes terrorism. For just as long, Ramadan has been out to prove that his worldview makes perfect sense. Ramadan wants to articulate an Islam that is compatible with the liberal democracies of Europe (where he grew up and now lives), one that advocates an end to victimhood and engages with the world's political reality. Not surprisingly, Ramadan has often run into controversy -- and frequently has relished it. No wonder his latest book, What I Believe, "is a work of clarification," as he writes. It is meant to spell out the "basic ideas I have been defending for more than twenty years."

Reading list: The Sum of All Heresies, by Fredrick Quinn; Angels in My Hair, by Lorna Byrne; Contemporary Chinese Philosophy.

Wants to visit: Egypt, from which I am banned.

Best idea: Put an end worldwide to nuclear weapons.

Worst idea: Promote an "ethical capitalism."

Gadget: Facebook, BlackBerry, and iPhone.